Coin chute for coin collectors



Aug. 31, 1937. P. E. MILLS 2,091,556

COIN CHUTE FOR COIN COLLECTORS Original Filed June 16, 1956 FIG. 2

FIG.

INVEN 70/? P. E. M/LLS BY A T TORNE V Patented Aug. 31, 1937 PATENT!orrice COIN CHUTE FOR COIN COLLECTORS Percy E. Mills, Towaco, N. J.,assignor to Bell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated, New York, N. Y.,a corporation of New York Original application June 16, 1936, Serial No.85,448. Divided and this application October 19, 1936, Serial No.104,973

2 Claims.

This invention relates to coin chutes, particularly to those intendedfor use in coin operated apparatus such as telephone coin collectors.

An object of this invention is toslow up the speed of coin travel in acoin chute in order to provide the proper time interval betweensuccessive operations by the same coin.

The primary object of this invention is concerned with the problem ofobtaining the proper time interval between two successive controloperations of the same coin traversing a coin channel while stillutilizing a relatively short length of coin channel between the twocontrol points. This feature of the invention is of particularimportance in telephone coin collector coin chutes where it is desiredto have a coin strike both the upper and lower portions of a gong orbell. It is necessary to insure that there is a substantial timeinterval between the two successive strikings a of the bell in orderthat the central office may properly interpret the double signal. Inaccordance with this invention the coin channel which guides the coinfrom the upper edge to the lower edge of the bell is defined by two rowsof spaced m pins or posts connecting the twoplates forming the front andrear walls of the chute. The arrangement of the pins is such as to causethe coin under the action of gravity to bounce back and forth in azigzag fashion from one row to n the other and, therefore, introduce aconsiderable delay in the time of coin travel as compared with a smoothcoin channel of the same length.

This application constitutes a division of my patent application SerialNo. 85,448, filed June 16,

, 1936, on Coin chutes for coin collectors.

3 Referring to the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a rear view of a coin chute assembly;

Fig. 2 is a rear view of the center plate of the coin chute embodyingthis invention; and

, Fig. 3 illustrates the general manner of mounting a coin chute in atelephone coin collector.

The coin collector coin chute illustrated in the attached drawing is, ingeneral, of the conventional type in that it comprises front, center andrear plates suitably fastened together with a quarter runway between thefront and center plates, and nickel and dime runways between the rearand center plates conforming in general construction to the type of coinchute disclosed in the O. F. Forsberg United States Patent 1,043,219,issued November 5, 1912. The manner in which the coin chute is mountedin a laterally inclined position within a telephone coin collector H isshown in Fig. 3. The coin gauge l2 on top of the collector II hasseparate openings for receiving nickels, dimes and quarters andindividual runways for these coins are provided in the coin chute i3 inorder that the coins may be tested in certain particulars beforedropping into a coin hopper M.

Fig. 1 shows the rear view of a coin chute assembly. The rear coverplate [5 of Fig. 1 has been removed in Fig. 2 to show the nickel anddime runways formed in the rear side of the center plate 15. Referringmore particularly to Fig. 2 the coin entrance for nickels is at thepoint ll whereupon the genuine coin follows a longitudinally inclinedpassage between walls It and i9 until the coin strikes an arm of awasher rejector 20 which prevents the coin from continuing further inthe same direction and causes the coin to drop through an opening in thebottom wall between the points 2! and 22 whereupon it is guided in thereverse direction by bottom wall 23. 23 the coin drops onto the bottomwall 24 and passes alongside the under-diameter reject opening 25 of theusual type. The coin after rolling off the lower end of wall 24 strikesa pivoted arm 26 which normally projects into the runway for deflectinglightweight coins into a discharge opening located between projection 2iandthe pole 28 of a magnet forming the termination of wall 24. However,a genuine coin has sufiicient momentum to knock arm 26 outside therunway and continue to the right of projection 21 down a passage betweenwalls 29 and 38 to strike the lower edge of gong 3i and then downthrough outlet opening 32 into the coin hopper Id of Fig. 3.

The entrance for a dime is at the point 33 and the deposited dime rollsalong bottom wall 34 past a suitable under-diameter reject opening 35.The lower end of wall 34 comprises a pole 36 of a straight bar magnetfor deflecting magnetic coins. The direction of travel of the dime isreversed by curved wall 31 and the dime then encounters an arm of a starwheel washer rejector 38 which stops the dime from continuing on in thesame direction, and allows the coin to drop through an opening in thebottom wall of the runway between the points 39 and it] whereupon thecoin strikes the upper edge of the bell 3|. After striking the bell thedime continues down a channel between two rows of pins 41. Adjacent pinsin each row are spaced apart a distance substantially less than the coindiameter to prevent a coin from leaving the channel. The two rows ofpins are spaced relatively close together to prevent a coin fromdropping freely down the channel between the rows and the pins in thetwo rows are staggered.

After reaching the lower end of bottom wall 9 Since the channel definedby pins positioned in this staggered manner is tortuous it follows thatthe coin bounces back and forth in a zigzag course between the pinsuntil it strikes the lower edge of the bell and drops out through theexit opening 32 into the coin hopper M of Fig. 3. This irregular courseof the dime considerably increases the time for the dime to travel fromthe upper edge to the lower edge of bell 3| and, therefore, insures thatthe two successive strikings of the bell will be correctly heard by theremote operator. These pins 41 may be of any suitable metal or maycomprise metallic pins surrounded by bushings of rubber or otherresilient material to further delay the passage of the coin through thechannel.

The washer rejector 20 for the nickel runway and the washer rejector 38for the dime runway are described and claimed in the copendingapplication Serial No. 85,448, filed June 16, 1936. The lightweight slugrejector 26 located in the nickel runway is described and claimed in mycopending application Serial No. 104,972, filed October 10, 1936.

It is to be understood that the tortuous path disclosed in Fig. 2 forthe dime runway may be employed, if desired, in runways for otherstandard coins.

What is claimed is:

1. In a coin operated mechanism, a signaling device comprising a bell, acoin channel having an opening to permit a deposited coin to strike theupper edge of said bell and having a second opening farther down thechannel to permit the deposited coin to strike the lower edge of saidbell, said channel between said opening comprising front and rear sidewalls, two rows of spaced pins between said walls defining the path ofcointravel, the said pins being so located that a substantial part ofthe coin path between said openings is within said bell, said rows beingspaced relatively close together while still permitting a standard cointo pass between said rows, the distance between adjacent pins in thesame row being substantially less than the diameter of a standard coin,said rows being steeply inclined and defining a tortuous channel.

2. A coin operated mechanism in accordance with claim 1 in which saidpins comprise resilient material at the points of coin impact.

PERCY E. MILLS.

